does attendu que mean "given that" /"considering that"/ whereas. it appears at the beginning of every paragraph in a french legal document i'm working on and i'm not sure if all of the "attendu que"s mean "given that"( my best option) or any of the other options i listed

In English legalese, you'll often see series of paragraphs starting with WHEREAS (all capital letters). That's all I can offer, unfortunately, not being a lawyer.
– Dan BronOct 17 '14 at 11:46

In English, what a term means in ordinary language is not necessarily the same as what it means in a legal document. If the same is true in French, you may need to consult a French lawyer. There is this définition I found in un dictionnaire juridique, which may help.
– Peter Shor Oct 17 '14 at 13:14

@peter shor.. i guess thats what i might have to do.
– Sally OsaetinOct 17 '14 at 14:39

Did you read the definition I found? Legal language in French is even more contorted than legal language in English! Summarizing: every judgement must consist of a single sentence (the grammar kind, not the legal kind), the subject being "The Court", and having only one full stop on the end. The phrase "Attendue que" (starting with a capital "A") introduces a subordinate clause giving a reason for the judgment.
– Peter Shor Oct 17 '14 at 14:46

@peter shor , yes i did. i strongly believe its "given that" because it is mostely used in legal documents and in courts. im not just very sure but im googling this in quotes.
– Sally OsaetinOct 17 '14 at 14:57

1 Answer
1

In a court order, just before the paragraph specifying the judgment or order is a paragraph listing the reasons for the order. These reasons are called findings of fact. The paragraph would be laid out like this:

Findings of Fact

The Court makes the following Findings of Fact:

That M and F were married 24 November 2003.

That M and F separated on 1 January 2007.

That three children were born of the marriage, to wit, X, Y, and Z,

That in the above sentence fragments is used in the same way as attendu qu.

You really need a French legal dictionary and an English legal dictionary to solve these problems, along with a working knowledge of pleadings, that is, customary legal forms.